From September 27 to 29, in Brussels, a gathering as discreet as it is strategic is to take place between the main leaders of Western countries’ arms acquisitions. During these three days, different formats of discussions must follow one another: first at NATO headquarters between allies, on September 27, then under the aegis of the United States between countries of the “contact group” which coordinates the logistics of arms deliveries to Ukraine on the 28th, and, finally, under the leadership of the European Union (EU) on the 29th. : better coordination of joint arms purchases, in particular to resupply kyiv.
“I hope that at the end of this session, we will be much more willing [et] able to work together”a senior US defense official said on September 23, quoted by the specialized media Breaking Defense. The discussions focus on two priorities, according to this official: the acquisition of “interchangeable systems”i.e. modifiable to fill the gaps in Ukrainian capabilities, and a support strategy to ensure that this same equipment remains in working order during the time of the war.
But if the time is for cooperation, the Ukrainian conflict has indeed revived the old US-EU rivalry in the acquisition of armaments; 60% of EU acquisitions are now made outside Europe. “We must not hide that there is a real industrial rivalry, we must play to all our European assets without institutional quarrels”believes Claude-France Arnould, former director of the European Defense Agency (EDA), adviser to the French Institute of International Relations.
« The United States pushes the EU to strengthen industrial capacities [usines et personnels] of European defence, because they are worried about the current drying up of armaments in Ukraine”, nuance a diplomatic source. In particular because American capabilities are not necessarily in better condition than those of Europeans, as demonstrated by Poland’s recent purchase of hundreds of tanks and other equipment from South Korea.
Encourage investment in European industry
A sign of the ambient tension, only the United States have, for the time being, officially announced the meeting of the directors general of armaments under their aegis in Brussels, of which this is the first edition. A meeting where they arrive in force, while the State Department announced, on September 8, its intention to release some 2.2 billion dollars (2.29 billion euros) for ” to help “ Ukraine’s allies and neighbors that have supplied weapons against Russia, to purchase US military equipment. This aid is in addition to a line of credit of more than 700 million dollars opened at the end of April, or nearly 3 billion in total.
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